The Kaduna State Government has denied Nasir El-Rufai’s assertion that all projects recently commissioned by President Bola Tinubu during his visit to Kaduna were launched by his administration.
The former governor stated in an Arise television interview on Monday that all of the projects commissioned by the president during his visit to the state were launched by his government.
However, the state government responded to El-Rufai’s claim by calling it a “bare-faced lie” and an attempt to distort the facts.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by Governor Uba Sani’s Chief Press Secretary, Ibraheem Musa, the government outlined the true origins and achievements of the projects commissioned by President Tinubu, emphasising that they were either initiated or completed during Governor Sani’s tenure.
During his official visit to Kaduna, Tinubu launched three important projects: the Institutes of Vocational Training and Skills Development, the 300-bed Bola Ahmed Tinubu Specialist Hospital, and 100 Compressed Natural Gas Buses.
The state government emphasised that Governor Sani’s administration began and completed all vocational training colleges.
The projects include the Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa Institute in Rigachiku, the Col. Dangiwa Umar Institute in Soba, and the Sir Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa Institute in Samaru Kataf.
According to the statement, these institutes are fundamental to Governor Sani’s human capital development plan, aiming to provide Kaduna’s youth with practical skills and state-of-the-art facilities, with the goal of graduating 36,000 youths per year.
“The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has certified these institutions as the best-equipped skills development centres in Nigeria,” Musa stated, quoting NBTE’s Executive Secretary, Prof. Idris Bugaje, who commended the facilities as unmatched in the country.
The state government also highlighted the introduction of 100 CNG buses, a Governor Sani initiative aimed at mitigating the impact of fuel subsidy removal, and stated that “these eco-friendly buses offer free rides to workers, retirees, and students for the first six months, with subsidised fares for the general public thereafter.”
“This initiative demonstrates our administration’s commitment to social welfare and environmental sustainability,” the statement added.
The statement further observed that the 300-bed Bola Ahmed Tinubu Specialist Hospital was originally conceptualised during the reign of former Governor Namadi Sambo, adding, however, that the project lingered incomplete through three subsequent governments until Governor Sani took office.
It claimed that upon resumption of service, Governor Sani discovered the hospital at just 53% complete and bereft of vital medical equipment.
“The structure was an emblem of waste and mismanagement,” the statement noted.
According to the statement, the Kaduna governor prioritised the hospital’s completion, equipping the 300-bed facility with modern medical technology as part of a broader healthcare revitalisation agenda.
“The hospital’s successful completion is a signature achievement of Governor Sani’s administration,” Musa stated.
The statement titled “El-Rufai and his litany of lies” partly reads, “The attention of the Kaduna State Government has been drawn to the barefaced lies disseminated by the former Governor of Kaduna State, His Excellency, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, regarding the projects recently commissioned by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his visit to Kaduna.
“In a widely circulated television interview, Malam El-Rufai falsely claimed that all the projects commissioned by Mr President were initiated by his administration. This assertion is not only misleading but also a blatant distortion of the truth.
“In light of these tangible and verifiable achievements, Malam Nasir El-Rufai’s resort to distortions and falsehoods is regrettable but not surprising. While he is entitled to his opinions, facts remain sacred.
“Governor Uba Sani has succeeded where others have faltered. No amount of revisionism can rewrite the truth.”
